Editor's Corner
An Explosive Issue
The General Conference session of 1995 is soon to convene. Of the issues the delegates will consider, none has stirred as much controversy among church members as the question whether to allow the executive committees of the Divisions of the church to decide independently whether to ordain women to the gospel ministry in their fields.
The initiative for this proposal has come from the North American Division in response to pressure from influential, if relatively small, groups who have been pursuing this agenda step by step for a quarter-century or more. The movement has failed to catch on with most church members. After twenty years of permission to ordain women as local elders, more than 80% of the churches in North America have not done so.
This lack of enthusiasm for the cause of women's ordination has not deterred its supporters. Even after the resounding defeat of ministerial ordination for women at the last General Conference (about 75% against), they have continued to plan and work toward achieving their goal. The proposal before the General Conference this time is one step in the process, calling for Divisions to have the option to ordain women if they find it appropriate. At least three factors indicate that the delegates should be very cautious about this proposal.
First, those most deeply committed to the ordination of women cannot be content with local option. They believe the gospel of Christ requires this "equal" treatment of women, and that anything less is sin. If this measure passes, they will be back for more.
Second, if the delegates approve the proposal, they will be putting the General Conference in session on record that there is no biblical objection to ordaining women. How, then, could some fields refuse to ordain women?
Third, the history of this movement in other churches (such as the Presbyterian Church USA) indicates that local option and "conscience clause" exemptions do not last long. Soon compliance with the new policy becomes mandatory for all.
The Bible, not political considerations, must be our guide. This is why ADVENTISTS AFFIRM has brought these articles together in this issue. We also have published an extended biblical study on the subject, called Searching the Scriptures, which we are mailing as a gift to our subscribers with this issue. If we will earnestly study the Scriptures on this matter, the Lord will make His guidance for us clear.
Still, the pressures on our leaders are great, and they deserve our prayers and our respect. We should feel free to discuss issues, but the Lord gives us no license to accuse one another or to pronounce judgment on character. Rather, we need to see how close we can come to one another, each learning from the other and going back to Scripture until we come to "the unity of the faith" (Eph 4:13).
This issue of ADVENTISTS AFFIRM comes to you in that spirit, presenting concerns which we believe the church should consider. As we set them forth, we do so with confidence that God will guide His people.
In This Issue
With ministerial training and a wealth of personal experience, Laurel Damsteegt is well qualified to write our lead article, "May Women Minister?" You will find her fresh insights thought-provoking. Her companion piece on Mrs. S. M. I. Henry will introduce you to an important woman in ministry.
In "Inspired Book or Inspiring Booklet?" Samuel Koranteng-Pipim explores what has happened to the Bible's authority in much of Christianity. He shows how these trends are affecting the Seventh-day Adventist church, even on the ordination question, and what we should do about the situation.
C. Mervyn Maxwell has written a response to Elder Alfred C. McClure's request to the Annual Council on behalf of the North American Division. In it he makes an appeal of his own.
Dr. Maxwell's brother, S. Lawrence Maxwell, makes a startling comparison between our situation today and one in Bible times in "One Chilling Word."
In "'No Turning Back' on Ordination?" Ethel Nelson brings a second response to Elder McClure's Annual Council address, raising spiritual issues that the church ought to consider.
J. J. Nortey has written a powerful response to some of the "cultural" arguments circulating. In "The Bible, Our Surest Guide," he calls our attention back precisely to where it belongs—to the Scriptures as the expression of God's will for His people.
From his retirement home in northern Michigan, C. Raymond Holmes reports on the stunning turnaround in the Christian Reformed Church, which last summer turned back from ordaining women in order to uphold the Bible.
Francis Wernick addresses the role of leadership in promoting unity in the church; and two selections from Ellen G. White focus on how we may attain unity as we approach disputed theological issues.
Finally, on the related issue of feminism and gender roles, Samuele Bacchiocchi has excerpted portions of a chapter from his new book, Christian Dress and Adornment, to call our attention to "Restoring Harmonious Gender Distinctions."